Chapter 19

Xu Xing's heartbeat, which had finally calmed down, spiked again. Jiang Zhuochen held his arm, looking surprised.

Wasn't it supposed to have disappeared? Why did it suddenly reappear? What just happened?

Jiang Zhuochen followed Xu Xing's gaze and looked outside, then his eyes flickered. Could it be this old woman? Was his master's soul inside her?

That's a very bad situation.

To prevent his master's soul from being destroyed along with his great-grandmother's ghost by the female ghost, Jiang Zhuochen used his spiritual power to block the attack. The blue and black spiritual energies collided violently, impacting and dissolving each other, leaving behind a gust of wind that dispersed in all directions.

"Stay here and don't move," he hurriedly instructed Xu Xing, and then burst out of the window in the next instant.

The female ghost was furious beyond words from the moment Jiang Zhuochen stopped her. She raised her hand and waved it forcefully, instantly enveloping both the man and the ghost in ghostly energy. The force of the rotation seemed to be able to crush them.

The old man lying on the ground moved his fingers with difficulty. Jiang Zhuochen was forcefully approached by a powerful force. He drew a few strokes on the talisman and then struck out with his palm. Golden light flashed in front of him, gradually dispelling the female ghost's attack.

Jiang Zhuochen helped the old man up. The old man gently placed his hand on Jiang's wrist and said in a weak voice, "Let's go quickly, it's too dangerous."

Jiang Zhuochen took a moment to reply to her: "I will get you out of here."

The faint sigh was drowned out by the surging ghostly energy. Jiang Zhuochen had no time to pay attention to it. He drew his sword, mobilized most of his spiritual power to unleash the Myriad Swords Technique, and pointed the sword directly at the female ghost!

Part of the ghostly energy in the air was swept away, and Jiang Zhuochen sensed the weaker side, so he cleaved a path and took the old man away.

When he reached the distance where Jiang Zhuochen thought the female ghost couldn't find him, he put the old man down, took out a medicine bottle from his Qiankun bag, poured himself two Ten-Ingredient Tonic Pills, and chewed them while brooding.

The old woman lay half-reclined with her eyes closed, and after a while, she slowly took a breath. She opened her eyes wearily and saw Jiang Zhuochen idly pulling weeds beside her, and her eyebrows curved slightly.

"Thanks."

"You're awake?" Jiang Zhuochen turned around. "Are you alright?"

"I won't die for now." The old man asked in a soft, slow tone, "Did you need something from me?"

“Yes…” Jiang Zhuochen scratched his head. Not only did he have some, but he had quite a lot.

"Ask me, and I'll tell you everything I know."

Perhaps because he had saved her life, the old woman gave Jiang Zhuochen a weak smile, her wrinkles deepening. But perhaps it was the long life she had lived that gave her an innate sense of peace, making her even more kind and compassionate.

Compared to the half-dead old man, Jiang Zhuochen's smile was more genuine. He asked, "Do you feel there's something inside you, like a wisp of a soul or something?"

“Oh…” the old man understood. “I can indeed sense the souls of others within me. You saved me because of them, right?”

"More or less," Jiang Zhuochen said tactfully.

"Take it if you want it." The old man understood his implication. "I've lived long enough, so don't worry about anything. Do whatever you need to do."

Seeing Jiang Zhuochen hesitate, she comforted him instead, "You saved my life, so there's no need to feel guilty."

Although the six realms are supposed to be independent of each other, people always like to meddle in other people's business. For example, right now, even if the other party is probably innocent, he could simply and brutally kill the ghost and take its soul, but since he still has a conscience, he would still feel a little guilty.

He pondered for a moment, then asked, "What is your relationship with that female ghost?"

The bright moonlight fell into the old man's eyes and turned into heavy frost. The past events that weighed on his heart gradually surfaced with his silent breathing, silently bending the old man's spine.

Her dry lips twitched slightly as she spoke in a sorrowful tone, "She is my twin sister."

Jiang Zhuochen's answer was confirmed, and he didn't interrupt. The old man continued, his expression a mixture of reminiscence and sorrow.

“I used to have a very good relationship with my sister, but then I secretly got a boyfriend and went abroad with him, leaving my sister alone at home to suffer. So when I came back from abroad, she had a grudge against me. I have been trying my best to make it up to her, but I never expected that she would take a fancy to my husband. The day before the wedding, she knocked me unconscious and got into the wedding car in my place, trying to force me to marry the scoundrel that my father picked for her.”

“I never expected to survive. My husband recognized that my sister wasn’t me and sent her back to us. That thug was furious that my sister didn’t want to marry him, so he took her home and abused her every day, forcing her to have children. I went back to see her a few times and even pleaded with my father to bring her back. But she didn’t appreciate it and increasingly believed that it was my fault. She thought I had abandoned her and made her lose face by being sent home in public again, and that the thug had continued to abuse her. She hated me more and more, and in the end, she died with her eyes open.”

“Apart from that one time I went abroad, I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong to her, but who would have thought that she would still haunt me even after she died. Oh well… as long as it helps me get over my anger, I’ll let her be.”

After listening, Jiang Zhuochen saw that the other person spoke with such conviction and deep emotion that it seemed genuine. Suddenly, he remembered something. "Old man, didn't you also have a jade pendant? Where did it go?"

The ghost was silent for a moment, seemingly surprised that he would ask this question, and then she took out the jade pendant. "This thing has been with me for over a hundred years, and it has long become a part of me, so naturally I can't bear to leave it behind."

Jiang Zhuochen was puzzled for a moment. When one is reincarnated, one cannot take any belongings with them. What is the use of leaving them behind? To take another look on the road to the underworld?

He didn't speak, so the old man took his hand and advised, "I've lived so long, with a house full of children and grandchildren, and enjoyed all the joys of life. I have no other desires. If I can help you, it's my way of doing good for my descendants."

Jiang Zhuochen came to his senses and shook his head. "This is not your fault. Since you were able to die a natural death in your previous life, you should be reincarnated to enjoy your blessings."

The old man smiled at this point. "Then do you know why I don't reincarnate?"

"Didn't your sister use magic to trap you?"

"No," the old man denied, letting out a long sigh. "Because when I was about to leave, a wisp of a spirit entered my body. The ghost messengers recognized my presence and wouldn't let me pass through the gates of hell, so I can only stay here. Don't feel guilty, just take it out."

After the first two exorcisms, Jiang Zhuochen discovered that his master's soul was in the ghost-infested area and had a certain suppressive effect.

He believed it to be true, but forcibly taking a soul would cause great harm to the ghost, which he couldn't do. Ghosts in the ghost realm couldn't use the elixirs of the cultivation world, so he had no way to heal the old man's injuries.

"Wait a moment."

Jiang Zhuochen sat down and entered a meditative state, entering his sea of ​​consciousness.

He took down the longevity lamp and asked, "Is there a gentler method for extracting the soul?"

The longevity lamp did not respond, so he shook it twice in anger, accidentally shaking out his master's two wisps of soul.

Jiang Zhuochen quickly stopped, "I'm sorry, Master, are you alright?"

The soul circled once inside the lamp.

Jiang Zhuochen's face lit up with joy. "Master, you can understand me?"

As a result, the soul only circled once and then did not react to Jiang Zhuochen's answer.

Sure enough, he could hope that the two remnant souls had some consciousness.

He poked at the lamp wall and muttered to himself, "Am I really going to have to kill a ghost and steal its soul?"

He pursed his lips, stubbornly continuing to poke. His fingernail brushed against the lampshade, easily pushing it off. Before Jiang Zhuochen could even wonder, a wisp of smoke from the lamp flame spilled out, slowly settling in front of him.

Jiang Zhuochen stretched out his hand, and the smoke settled in his palm. He held the longevity lamp up to his eyes. "Can I use this?"

After waiting for a while, Jiang Zhuochen decided to give up. If he didn't want to say anything, he wouldn't say anything. Anyway, if he was really stuck, he would still get a hint.

Jiang Zhuochen sat down cross-legged, refined the smoke in his hand, and then sent it into the old man's body.

A faint clarity remained in his eyes as he explained, "Your body is too weak, so I can only slowly draw out your soul. It will be safely removed by midnight tomorrow, at which time I will take the old man to be reincarnated."

The old man nodded. "Thank you so much."

Jiang Zhuochen took a step back, and the old man's figure slowly disappeared into the air.

On the other side, Xu Xing leaned against the bed, his heart pounding with agitation that kept rising and falling. He was a little tired.

The ghostly energy outside raged and wreaked havoc everywhere, while the room was brightly lit, as if it had been arranged to bypass him. The sounds of fighting outside gradually subsided, and soon his heartbeat calmed down. He closed his eyes to rest and wait for Jiang Zhuochen.

A sliver of white appeared on the distant horizon, the lingering eerie aura replaced by mist, making it no different from the tranquil and peaceful scene of the past.

Jiang Zhuochen pushed open the door and found Xu Xing with his eyes closed. He thought the other person was still asleep, so he quietly closed the door. A voice came from behind him.

Are you alright?

"It's nothing," Jiang Zhuochen replied reflexively, turning to face him. "Are you feeling better now?"

"Hmm," Xu Xing responded. "Why did it take you so long?"

Jiang Zhuochen yawned and sat down on the bedside. He told Xu Xing what he had recently learned, and the other listened quietly, occasionally letting out a muffled sound as a response.

He was lost in thought. The beginner had taught him how to identify the aura of a soul, but with his soul fragmented, the aura was extremely weak, something a novice like him who only studied sporadically could not easily detect.

Although he still didn't understand why Xu Xing could sense things or how he sensed them, he knew he had to stick close to this guy.

Xu Xing noticed Jiang Zhuochen's distraction and asked him, "Are you sleepy?"

Jiang Zhuochen scratched his head, then unconsciously yawned. "A little."

Xu Xing recalled that the other party had stayed up two long nights in the past two days investigating the ghost story, barely getting any sleep. He patted the inside of the bed, "Sleep if you're tired, we'll talk about the rest when you're awake."

The pale light outside the window grew increasingly distinct; dawn was fast approaching. Jiang Zhuochen paused, nodded, climbed inside, mechanically pulled the covers over himself, and closed his eyes.

Good night, see you tomorrow.

Xu Xing smiled slightly at the sleepy murmur, and he turned and lay down beside her.

He slept past noon, and Xu Xing disappeared without a trace. He lazily rolled over and lay on the bed, his stomach growling with hunger, but he didn't move.

He took the jade pendant out of the bag and held it in the air, still bothered by the fact that the female ghost was angry when she saw the jade pendant.

It's just an ordinary jade pendant, so why is it being treated like an enemy, with such hatred that one wants to grind it into powder?

No, he has to go and find out the truth.

A note from the author: